Local McDonald's owners pick new ad agency

An employee hands a drive-thru customer his order at a McDonald's Corp. restaurant in Oak Brook. (Tim Boyle/Bloomberg file photo)

The McDonald’s Owner/Operators of Chicagoland and Northwest Indiana have named Canada-based Cossette as their new local advertising agency.

The move, announced Monday, shifts marketing for nearly 500 area McDonald’s restaurants from Leo Burnett, which has represented the local owners group since the mid-1980s.

“We’re thrilled to welcome Cossette and their fresh creative ideas to MOCNI,” Ed Schmitt Jr., MOCNI co-op president, said in a statement. “They have a clear passion for our business, and a proven track record with our counterparts in Canada.”

Cossette is McDonald’s lead creative agency in Canada, handling national brand and regional owner/operator business across the country. This is the first U.S. McDonald’s assignment for the Quebec City-based agency, which will be opening up a Chicago office to service the local ownership group.

“We're extremely excited about working with McDonald's owner/operators in the company’s home town market,” Cossette President and CEO Brett Marchand said in a statement. “We started our partnership with one Canadian owner/operator 37 years ago in Quebec City, and this opportunity is another proud moment in our continued evolution with McDonald’s.”

Founded in 1972, Cossette clients include Procter & Gamble, Aeroplan, General Mills, Royal Canadian Mint, Royal Roads University and Chicago-based BMO Harris.

The Cossette Chicago office will be headed by Alyssa Huggins, who worked on the McDonald’s Canada business in Toronto. It will be staffed with about 20 people, including Cossette Canadian team members and local Chicago talent, according to executives.

The local McDonald’s owner/operator group manages marketing, community relations and other programs for Chicago-area restaurants. A recent campaign focused on family time and featured a high-traffic Michigan Ave. bus stop made over to look like a giant McDonald’s Happy Meal box. Located in front of a rival Subway restaurant, the bus stop was used for giveaways.

The local family-focused campaign, which also included television and radio spots, was ostensibly the last developed for the group by Leo Burnett. A spokeswoman for Leo Burnett declined to comment.

DDB Chicago is the lead agency in charge of the U.S. McDonald's advertising account.